LOGINAVAMy chest tightened.“Caden…” I whispered.He lifted his head slowly, his bloodshot eyes meeting mine for a brief second before drifting away. “You’re back,” he muttered, his voice rough. “Already done with Reid?”A frown etched on my forehead. “What?”A humorless laugh escaped him before he raised the bottle to his lips. “I saw you.” He took another long gulp. “You disappeared into the bathroom with him.”I stared at him in disbelief. “Reid was only showing me where the bathroom was.”“Sure he was.” His lips curled into a bitter smirk. “So… did he fuck you good enough?”“What the hell is wrong with you?” I snapped. “What happened to you, Caden?”Silence.Instead, he reached for another bottle lying beside him, and I took a step forward when—“DON’T!” His voice echoed through the kitchen.I ignored him. “I said don’t fucking come any closer.”I reached where he was seated. “You can’t tell me what to do!” My gaze fell to his injured hands. “Caden… you’re bleeding.”“This is none of
AVAI had no idea where the bathroom was.“Thanks for walking me,” I said with a smile as we stepped back into the hallway. “I would’ve probably ended up in someone’s bedroom.”Reid chuckled. “My pleasure. At least I finally got to have an actual conversation with you.”“You make it sound like I’m hard to talk to.”You kind of are.” He muttered. “Not because you’re hard to talk to. We just never seem to finish a conversation.”Silence settled between us for a moment. My eyes wandered around the room, searching for Mira. She had excused herself minutes ago, but there was still no sign of her.And then…my eyes searched for someone else.Caden.He had been seated on the couch all night, but now…he was nowhere in sight.I exhaled sharply, returning my gaze to Reid. “I should probably go look for Mira.”He arched his brows. “You sure she didn’t ditch you?”I shook my head. “Mira wouldn’t—”My phone vibrated before I could finish my sentence. Mira: Emergency!!! I had to rush back to schoo
CADENThe moment I turned away from her, I instantly regretted it.Why the fuck did I skate towards her? I wasn’t supposed to.The game had just ended, and the plan was simple: celebrate with the guys, acknowledge the fans, find Maya, then head back to the locker room.Instead… I skated straight to Ava.Then I smiled.What the fuck was that? Since when did I even smile that hard?And that invitation… Why the fuck did I invite her?No…The real question was…what the fuck was wrong with me?My teammates' celebrations blurred in my ears. I was supposed to be celebrating with them like I always did, but somehow… I didn’t know how. Because of her… Ava Delene had managed to sneak into my head like a thief. Because why couldn’t I stop thinking about her?No matter how hard I tried to get it out, she was stuck in my head.Her face. That sharp mouth is always ready to shoot back a response.And then—those lips. I swallowed hard as I traveled down memory lane that night. The balcony. Rain.
AVA “Mira, please wait,” I called out, my voice pleading. But she didn’t stop. “Mira, can you please let me explain?”She turned. “Explain what?” She spat. “How you’ve been lying to my face for God knows how long? Or how you have even been pretending?”“I…”“Save it, Ava, you had all the time to tell me, but you chose to keep it,” she interrupted, walking off.I followed her because I understood why she was hurt. We’d been best friends since we were five. We never kept secrets from each other, and I managed to keep this very vital information about myself from her.I caught up with her, holding her hands. “Just let me talk,” I said. “Please”.She folded her arms beneath her chest with a huff, actually willing to listen. “Tell me. And it better be a very reasonable excuse.”“I wanted to tell you.”“Wanted to? Ava, that’s what people say after they’ve already been caught. Besides, when? Before or after the whole school found out?”“I swear it's not like that.”“Then what is it like?
AVA“Caden!” I half-yelled, breaking whatever that was. “You’re bleeding!”My eyes widened as I stared at his hand, blood dripping steadily from his split knuckles.Panic kicked in immediately. “Caden… what happened?”Silence.I reached for his hand, but he flinched before I could touch it. “It’s nothing,” he muttered, taking a step back. “You don’t have to worry about me.”“This doesn’t look like nothing,” I shot back.He ran a hand through his damp hair, letting out a frustrated sigh. “You should go back to your room, Ava. It’s late.”I stared at him in disbelief. “You do know I’m not leaving, right?”Before he could protest, I grabbed his uninjured hand and led him towards the bed.“Sit.”A corner of his mouth twitched. “So you’re ordering me around now?”“Yes, I am.”“A little bossy, aren’t you?”“Are you going to sit, or should I make you?”“I’d love to see you—”“Sit down, Caden.” I interrupted.He held my gaze for another second before sighing in defeat and dropping onto the ed
AVAThe rain had started shortly after the argument. No one spoke much after that… Grant locked himself inside his study; Mom insisted on cleaning the table with me despite how exhausted she looked.“It’s okay, Mom,” I murmured, taking the last plate from her. “I’ll finish up.”She hesitated. “You sure?”I nodded with a smile. “Yes. Go get some rest.”After another reluctant glance toward the hallway, she squeezed my shoulder before leaving.Soon, the only sounds left in the kitchen were the steady patter of rain outside and the running tap as I rinsed the dishes.My mind, however, wasn’t on the plates. It was on Caden.On the blood at the corner of his mouth.The way, his eyes had looked when Grant mentioned his mother.On the way he’d looked……hurt.Twenty minutes later, I dried my hands on a towel and switched off the kitchen lights.The house had gone completely quiet. Everyone must have retired to bed, and I should too. Mom said my room was the second door on the left upstairs,







